What Are Some Budget-Friendly Meal Prep Ideas?

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Finding ways to save money? Our blog on How to save money: 36 tips you could try to build your savings shares various habits and strategies you can try to save effectively. One of the ideas mentioned is to start cooking and meal prepping, which can not only help you save time but also money. 

We know it can be difficult to start meal prepping because of the time it can take to find recipes, especially if you have specific dietary requirements, so we found some recipes to help you get started!. 

Below we have compiled some budget-friendly meal prep ideas to help you start your savings journey through cooking.

Quick and easy meal prep ideas

Are you short on time? Quick recipes can be your best friend, given there is minimal prep work and they’re generally easier to cook. Here are some example recipes below:

• French onion chicken rice
  • Approximate cost: $7.08 per serving 
  • Approximate cooking time: 10 minutes 

• Creamy fettuccine carbonara
  • Approximate cost: $3.10 per serving
  • Approximate cooking time: 15 minutes 

• Creamy garlic Tuscan prawns
  • Approximate cost: $5.95 per serving
  • Approximate cooking time: 20 minutes

Tip: Preparing your ingredients could make cooking quicker, some of the recipes take as long to prep compared to actual cooking time. 

Family size meal prep ideas

Some recipes are inherently large and are difficult to break down into smaller portions, but could be great for family dinners. Here are some examples recipes below:

• Chicken stew
  • Approximate cost: $5.03 per serving
  • Approximate cooking time: 40 minutes to cook
• Curry salmon slice
  • Approximate cost: $3.95 per serving 
  • Approximate cooking time: 40 minutes
• Lasagna
  • Approximate cost: $4.98 per serving 
  • Approximate cooking time: 40 minutes

Tip: Batch cooking could help you save time and money, as the ingredients might be cheaper if they are bought in a larger portion/sizes. Using a grocery calculator could be helpful to estimate how much your family or group should be spending.

Healthy meal prep ideas

Staying healthy should always be your number one priority, however now you can save money whilst staying healthy. Here are some delicious healthy cheap recipes:

• Hainanese chicken rice
  • Approximate cost: $7.85 
  • Approximate cooking time: 40 minutes

• Chicken noodle soup
  • Approximate cost: $5.73 per serving 
  • Approximate cooking time: 50 minutes

• Tuna casserole
  • Approximate cost: $2.64 per serving 
  • Approximate cooking time: 40 minutes

Tip: Buying seasonal fruits and vegetables are usually less expensive. Find out more about how to shop seasonally in our blog here.

Vegetarian/vegan meal prep ideas

If you are on a vegetarian or vegan diet there are also many meal prep ideas. Here are some examples: 

• Tofu enchiladas
  • Approximate cost: $6.51 per serving
  • Approximate cooking time: 30 minutes 
• Vegetarian Mushroom Bolognese
  • Approximate cost: $4.35 per serving
  • Approximate cooking time: 30 minutes
• Vegan Shepherd’s Pie
  • Approximate cost: $2.83 per serving
  • Approximate cooking time: 30 minutes

Tip: Comparing prices between supermarkets might make the difference in your savings. You could check out your local supermarket specials page as they list all the products that are on discount or have special promotions.

When buying the ingredients or planning your next meal make sure you stick to your grocery list and not buy unnecessary snacks. If you are curious why your shopping bill is so expensive, read our blog here to understand why and how to fix it.

Disclaimer: Costs written above are estimates only and could vary based on product quality, place of purchase, time of purchase and inflation. The time taken are also estimates provided by external websites and have not been tested by Beforepay.  Beforepay Group Ltd, ABN: 63 633 925 505. Beforepay allows eligible customers to access their pay and provides budgeting tools. Beforepay does not provide financial products, financial advice or credit products. The views provided in this article include factual information and the personal opinions of relevant Beforepay staff and do not constitute financial advice. Beforepay and its related bodies corporate make no representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness, timeliness or reliability of the contents of this blog post and do not accept any liability for any loss whatsoever arising from the use of this information. Please read our Terms of Service carefully before deciding whether to use any of our services.